First Impressions / To Aru Majutsu no Index

Summary:

Some time ago in a small village, a girl dressed in miko garb stood in front of a pile of bodies and realized that she had killed again. Back in the present, Touma is downcast because he had to spend money buying a reference book. Index meanwhile gets caught up in the prospect of eating ice cream and harps on him about it. Touma is now out of the hospital, but he’s still keeping the fact that he doesn’t have his memories a secret, especially from Index. The two end up running into Touma’s classmates and head to a fast food restaurant together so that Index can get some ice cream. However, when they try to find seating, they come across a girl with her head face down on a table. She admits to eating a lot and spending too much money, so she’s now short 100 yen for the train ride home. When Touma suggests that she borrow the amount from someone, she looks to him for it, but he refuses. The girl thus turns her request towards Touma’s friends and cites how one of them took her photo, but that just prompts an irked Index to comment on how a miko is selling her looks. The girl, however, declares that she’s not a miko and insists instead that she’s a mage. This offends Index, particularly because Touma doesn’t question the girl like he did to Index when they first met, but the discussion is cut short when the group suddenly gets surrounded by a bunch of men in suits. The girl approaches one of these men and asks for 100 yen, and the man gives it to her without saying a word. Before leaving, the girl introduces these men as her cram school teachers, and that leaves Touma confused.

Afterward, on the way home, Index finds an abandoned cat in a box on the side of the road. She immediately names it Sphinx and wants to adopt it, but Touma refuses. The cat ends up running away, but more importantly, Index suddenly senses something in the flow of magical power nearby and goes to investigate. While Index is gone, Touma is approached by Stiyl who wants to talk about the Misawa cram school where a girl is supposedly being confined. Stiyl notes that the school has become a quasi religion that worships science and that there’s an alchemist named Aureolus Izzard who’s been hiding for three years. Aureolus’s goal is Deep Blood, which is the name of the ability that the aforementioned girl has that can kill certain creatures: vampires. Stiyl’s plan is to attack the Misawa cram school and get Deep Blood out, and he coerces Touma to go with him. For the time being though, Stiyl leaves, and Touma and Index return home together. Much to Touma’s dismay, Index has secretly brought home the cat, and after arguing with her, he finally gives in and lets her keep it. Since he has work to do with Stiyl, Touma claims that he dropped his reference book and leaves to look for it. Outside his apartment, he finds Stiyl putting down rune cards all over the place because he’s leaving Innocentius to guard Index. This prompts Touma to question if Stiyl likes Index, and Stiyl gets embarrassed and tries to deny it.

When the two arrive at the cram school building, Stiyl reveals that the building itself is an alchemist’s seal. Stiyl also explains that alchemists’ ultimate goal is to simulate everything in the world and suggests the possibility of bringing what’s imagined out into reality. He shows Touma a picture of the girl who has Deep Blood, noting that her name is Himegami Aisa, and Touma realizes that it’s the same girl he met at the fast food restaurant. Inside the building, everything looks normal, but they then notice what Touma thinks is a broken robot leaning against one of the pillars. Stiyl, however, identifies it not as a robot but as a corpse.

Preview

Well, for starters, seeing a young girl in a red-hued world being voiced by Noto Mamiko screamed Enma Ai to me. I half expected her to say ippen shinde miru. Fortunately, the similarity didn’t hold for longer than that scene because she gets older and the red hue disappears. And speaking of being reminded of other series, I couldn’t help but think of this week’s episode of CHAOS;HEAD when Stiyl started talking about alchemists trying to bring things imagined in one’s head out into reality – it was just like what Takumi had said about delusions becoming reality.

Anyway, Index got kind of annoying with her tantrums this episode, first about the ice cream and then about the cat. Part of it is because neither of those things really contributed to the story, and we already have a pretty good idea of what kind of character Index is. At least the pregnant thing was amusing. Overall though, this episode was almost entirely setup for next week’s attack on the cram school. I might be getting used to all the exposition because it didn’t really bother me that much this time, especially since they explained the Deep Blood thing, and next week looks like it could be exciting (though given past episodes, I’m not getting my hopes up).

24 Comments

  2. yeah, when I first saw the picture of her belly, I was like what the hell is going on? So the miko is a grow-up not a kid like in the OP? that is interested. And I think having one kid (Index) is enough for this anime.

    mysterious
    Reply

  9. @K
    It’s not an original. Still following the novels at the moment. This episode would be the start of volume 2. Roughly speaking they have one female lead per volume, Show Spoiler ▼

    etc.

    BlackBishop
    Reply

  12. Index’s rants: bad
    Hungry miko: funny as hell
    Touma’s memories: whatever
    Index’s prego stunt: funny as hell

    The episode was ok but Index’s rants just got to me. I hate running gags.

    Megas
    Reply

  23. besides her saying “Touma” every 3 seconds, i liked her ice-cream rant, the lengths she went to just to let him know all the reasons she didnt want ice-cream, how she wasnt allowed to have ice-cream, and how that wasnt what she was even thinking about, ……. all in order to have a round-a-bout way of asking for some ice-cream to accidentally fall into her mouth was pretty funny. and then she has to settle for some shakes at a McDonald’s. i also liked her using prayer as a way of trying to get what she wants. good episode overall, and the whole 100 yen thing was great. oddly, i am also used to all the explanations and stuff, and maybe the reason i didnt mind any of these things include the fact that it has been a looooooong week for me so it seems like i havent watched an episode in about a month.

    GGear0323
    Reply

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